Madam C. J. Walker (1867-1919) was a leading African-American businesswoman in the 1910s, and a pioneer in the beauty industry. Her products not only promised “good hair” and a “smooth, clear complexion” but also success for black women, a narrative that reflected Walker’s own ambition and remarkable rise as the first free-born American citizen in a family of slaves. In addition to running a business so successful that she was America’s wealthiest African-American women at the time of her death, Walker founded and supported beauty colleges, which offered financial independence to African-American “hair culturists.” Her activities encompassed not only the production and marketing of beauty products, but also philanthropic support of African-American civil rights causes.

The James Weldon Johnson Collection at the Beinecke Library includes printed material, ephemera, photographs, and realia relating to Madam C.J. Walker and the African-American beauty industry of the early 20th century. (LC)